What is a push scam?

13 Apr 2024

APP fraud, push-payment fraud, and push scams are some of the terms used to describe this type of scam. It remains one of the largest rackets when it comes to financial fraud, typically involving a situation where fraudsters dupe the victim to authorize a transfer of funds to them under a pretext.

In push scams, unlike conventional scams where the fraudster directly commits theft of funds, the type of scam depends on misleading the victim into taking actions and voluntarily approving transactions. We further instructed businesses and individuals on how to reduce the danger of falling victim to a push scheme, and we urged them to learn about how push scams work.

How push scams work

Push scams typically involve the following steps:

• Deception: Scammers reach out to a possible victim in the first step of their operation by phone, email, social media, or text messaging on a mobile device. This could seem to be an agent from a bank, the government, or tech support.

The conman will use various persuasive maneuvers that create an urgent or compelling situation for the victim to be induced to provide funds; for example, bank account compromise, winning a prize, taxes/fees to pay out, or loaning out the money needed. The goal is to create a sense of urgency or fear to prompt the victim to take immediate action.

• Instructions on Transfer of Funds: After gaining the victim's trust, instructions on how to transfer the necessary money or make the requisite payments using legitimately accepted payment methods—such as bank transfers, wire transfers, or even mobile payment apps—will follow.

Victims are generally requested to provide sensitive financial information or, in some cases, are even asked to give access to their online banking accounts to facilitate the supposed transaction.

• Authorization and Payment: When victims voluntarily participate in a legitimate transaction or believe they are resolving a legitimate issue, it is their free will to be willing to lose the money under transfer.

However, the so-called victim is unaware that the money is sent straight into the scammer's account, and the promised shipment of products or services never materializes.

• Fraud Realization: It is at this moment that victims may discover after the transaction is over, that they have not received what they were promised or that they may have had to pay some unforeseen fees.

By this point, it is often difficult to recover the lost funds or trace the perpetrators.

Preventive measures against push scams

• Identity Verification: Always verify the nonidentity of the person contacting you, particularly when they ask for details or financial transactions. Additionally, you may be sure that no one will ever put pressure on you to act quickly or divulge sensitive information without due diligence.

Exercise caution, particularly when responding to unsolicited correspondence that makes extravagant or unrealistic demands for action or offers prizes and benefits that are not feasible. You always take your time to independently research who the sender or organization is about the claims being made before taking that step.

Verify any requests or inquiries with the official websites, phone numbers, or email addresses of reputable businesses. Do not download attachments from unknown links or suspicious sources.

• Safeguard personal information: Never share sensitive details like account numbers, passwords, or PINs with someone whom you should trust implicitly. You are supposed to be weary to provide any information online or over the phone, as scammers may use this in their fraudulent acts.
• Stay informed: You can recognize the risk of falling victim to a push scam with ease if you are familiar with the latest fraud trends and common scam techniques. To help save others from their aim, report any such action to the relevant authorities or consumer protection organizations.

Push-scam is a new, currently one of the most common, financial frauds, wherein fraudsters capitalize on trust and deception: victims authorize transactions that seem to be of an established nature but, in reality, are fictitious. Understanding how push scams work and being ahead in terms of request verification are an important part of mitigating the chance of push scams.

PayCEC, as a full-service payment solution provider, enjoyed the ability to offer users the strength to secure their selves in their financial transactions against fraud. The system makes use of advanced fraud detection methods, encryption, and strict security guidelines to guarantee the safest payment processing while lowering the incidence of push fraud. Go live with PayCEC now and have confidence that your transactions are safe from intrusion and fraudulent activities.